ALBANY, N.Y. (WRGB) -- Toll booths on the New York State Thruway will be a thing of the past come the end of the year.

On Wednesday, Thruway Authority Executive Director Matthew Driscoll announced the installation of the first two tolling gantries in the $355 million project to transition into cashless tolling.

A total of 70 gantries will be installed throughout the Thruway’s entire 570-mile ticketing system by the end of the year.

“Over the coming weeks and months, more and more gantries will be installed and drivers will notice more work zones on the shoulders of the highway and inner change ramps,” said Driscoll.

He said that ramps and roadways will not be closed down as crews continue to install the 70 gantries throughout the year.

Driscoll urge motorists to slow down and follow the state’s Move Over Law when entering these work zones.

“When completed, the hundreds of millions of people who travel the Thruway each year will enjoy non-stop travel which will ease congestion, enhance safety, and lower idling emissions,” said Driscoll.

“This work will be work by the end of 2020,” said Driscoll. “When the switch is flipped, the entire system goes live.”

For E-ZPass customers, toll will be collected using the same process.

Those without E-ZPass will get a bill in the mail.

“You’ll be using the billing process called Tolls By Mail, so when you drive under one of these gantries, it will take a picture of your license plate and a bill will be sent in the mail to the registered owner of that vehicle,” said Driscoll.

“We encourage motorist to update their address with the DMV to ensure they get the bills,” said Driscoll.

Motorists can avoid fines or possible registration suspension by paying their toll bills on time.

“If they don’t respond after 100 days and we can’t find them or get them, we will assign that debt to a collection agency,” said Driscoll.

He said the easiest way to avoid billing issues is to get an E-ZPass.

“We don’t have to send anybody a bill and they may not miss it in the mail and it just avoids problem. Getting an easy pass is very simple,” said Driscoll.

E-ZPass tags are free and are available at over 900 locations across the state, including Thruway service areas. (For more information on how you can get an E-ZPass, click here)

Once the cashless system is live, crews will begin removing toll booths starting January 2021.

With the removal of toll booths, roughly 1200 Thruway toll booth employees will no longer have a job.

According to Driscoll, the Thruway Authority has been providing these workers with job placement assistance.

“For nearly 2 years, we’ve been working with our workers, our part-time toll workers and our full-time toll workers, providing training opportunities, CDL opportunities, job placement and other agencies in the state and in private sectors, so we’re going to continue to work with these people. They are a very important part of our family,” said Driscoll.

CBS 6 reached out to the union that represents New York State Thruway Authority employees, but have yet to hear back.